OFF THE LAOIS PORTLAOISE HAS SEEN A LOT OF RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IN RECENT YEARS AND LAOIS COUNTY COUNCIL AND OTHERS ARE NOW LOOKING AT WAYS TO IMPROVE THE TOWN FOR THE PEOPLE LIVING THERE.
P
Rental and house prices Average asking price in Laois: €173k. Quarterly change: +1.9%
ortlaoise is on a mission to become
Ireland easily. Andrew Cremin, a valuer and
Yearly change: +1.9%.
Ireland’s first low-carbon town.
commercial surveyor based in the town says you
Daft.ie House Price Report Q4 2019.
This involves getting people living in
can reach the whole country from Portlaoise
Average rent in Laois: €990 per month
the town centre again and making the area more
easily and that he has seen a huge demand for
Quarter change: +1%
pedestrian and cycle friendly.
warehousing: “Those connections and Laois
Yearly change: +7.4%
Angela McEvoy, Senior Planner at Laois County
sitting right in the middle of it, that’s why we have
Daft.ie Rental Price Report Q4 2019
Council (LCC) says the Main Street is dominated
experienced massive demand. Every company
by cars and doesn’t give a great pedestrian
that is trying to contain their costs and hit all
banking. It’s not all business, it’s social groups,
experience. The Council is trying to make the
the markets in Ireland, where the biggest
traders’ organisations, Laois County Council’s own
pedestrian connection between Main Street and
densities are, have all looked at basing
Business Development Unit, which they formed
Laois Shopping Centre more pleasant, as it is a
themselves in Portlaoise”.
out of this, and Laois Tourism. Everybody with a
very walkable distance and there is no need to
However, Andrew explains that when it comes to
stake in Portlaoise, socio or economic, sits at this
drive between the two.
commercial developments, building costs are still
table. They set out to look at what we had, where
Portlaoise is often thought of as a commuter
ahead of market values.
we were and where we wanted to be”.
town. One of LCC’s aims is to get fewer people
Portlaoise has a scheme to encourage retailers to
The Council has also been improving the town’s
leaving the county every day for work. The Council
open in the town. Under the three-year rate
cultural quarter, says Angela: “We opened
wants to encourage more businesses to set up in
incentive scheme, new businesses in units that
Fitzmaurice Place, which we took from a very
the town and has facilitated space to make it
have been vacant for six months or more get 75%
concreted, grey public realm space and we
easier to work remotely from Portlaoise.
off their rates in the first year, 50% in the second,
landscaped it, opened up the old fort walls and
But Portlaoise’s central location and good
and 25% in the third.
added more planting and vegetation and
transport links have benefitted the town. Situated
Andrew is part of the Portlaoise Development
biodiversity around it”.
on the M7, in the centre of Ireland, and with the
Taskforce, which LCC put together with prominent
There has been much housing development in the
Dublin–Cork and Dublin–Limerick rail lines
local
associations:
town since the end of the recession, along with
running through it, it has become very popular for
“It consists of people from the retail business
some significant business investments. Find out
companies who want to move goods around
community, planning, local county councillors,
more on the map.
FEATURE Colm Quinn Journalist and Sub-editor, Think Media
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SURVEYORS JOURNAL Volume 10, Issue 1, Spring 2020
business
leaders
and
